The biggest source of Idaho’s transportation dollars is the federal government, but Idaho lawmakers and transportation experts agree that’s going to change soon.
Much of the federal funding in the current Idaho Transportation Department’s current budget comes from the stimulus plan Congress approved in February, money that won’t be in the next ITD budget. The stimulus was “a shot in the arm that lasted briefly” according to Tom Warne, who spent decades working for the Utah and Arizona transportation departments. Warne spoke Wednesday to a state task force looking at how to fund construction and maintenance projects for roads and bridges. The ITD estimates that repairs and restoration work for bridges and roads will total more than $200 million a year in the next few years.
Warne said Idaho is the state 12th-most reliant on federal funding for roads, but will likely see less money in the next major federal transportation bill, which may not be approved until for three years. He says that’s because the climate-conscience members of Congress and the Obama administration are shifting spending priorities toward high-speed rail lines and other mass transit projects. Warne says the “newfound love for high speed rail is not terribly relevant to Idaho.” He says future federal road dollars will also have more environmental regulations and other requirements attached.
“We’re not going to be able to count on a lot of new federal money,” said Lieutenant Governor Brad Little, who is leading the transportation funding task force put together by Governor Butch Otter in June.
While federal funding could taper off, other states are experimenting with their own transportation funding plans that could work in Idaho. Some of Idaho’s neighbors, Wyoming, Utah, and Oregon, rely far less on federal money for roads. Warne said citizens will usually pay for transportation plans if the plans are specific and require only temporary tax and fee increases. His main example is Utah, where lawmakers approved a multi-billion dollar highway construction plan prior to hosting the Winter Olympics. Other states have all relied on raising the sales tax or specific taxes on gas, vehicles, rental cars, hotels or other statewide or local fees to fund transportation projects with the support of either lawmakers or voters.
Last session, Otter failed to convince the Legislature to raise taxes and fees to pay for transportation infrastructure. Lawmakers, particularly in the House, said Otter either did not make a compelling enough case for more money or that the economic conditions were not right for a tax hike.
